Disney Snowglobes has a few photos of a D23 exhibit set up in the One Man’s Dream exhibit at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. One thing that caught my eye was the series of D23 portraits featuring Disney characters such as the Jiminy Cricket one that was first shown to the world exclusively by Stitch Kingdom. In addition to Jiminy (Wishes Come True) and Bandleader Mickey (Made for You and Me), the portraits include Cinderella’s glass slipper (Perfect Fit), the Mad Hatter (Your Cup of Tea), Dopey (Speechless), Tinker Bell (Think of the Happiest Things) and 101 Dalmations (Hits the Spot).

DisneyMovieRewards.com is offering exclusive merchandise to D23 members. Currently two items are available: The pin featured to the left is a limited edition of 2300, 1.75″ wide and can be redeemed for 500 points.

Also available is a 1/2 inch square D23 pendant (including 18″ chain) and accented with a Swarovski crystal. The pendant can be redeemed for 1000 points.

D23 Head Steven Clark began the call by providing some background and inspiration on D23, talking about how the Walt Disney Company first got its start on October 16, 1923 (where the 23 comes from) by signing its contract to produce the Alice comedies.

Clark addressed concerns about why there hasn’t been a greater outreach by Disney to its fans in the past. He stressed that Disney has always reached out to its fan base in many different aspects but that they’ve always been at the hand of individual units. D23 represents the first time the company has formed a united front to bring that level of relationship to the Disney fan community. Clark defines D23 as pulling back the curtain, going behind closed doors, going backstage and meeting the cast members that make the magic every day, all summed up as the ultimate insider Disney experience.

Membership is $74.99 plus sale tax annually per individual. At this time, registration can only be done online at either Disney.com/D23 or DisneyShopping.com. In the future, vouchers will be able to be purchased at the theme parks, the Disney Store and the Disney Cruise Lines.

International guests are able to join, but will have to pay additional shipping as required (for now, domestic shipping is free).

Gift memberships are also available to give to loved ones in addition to those under the age of 18.

Since it’s only a matter of time that teen celebrity gossip site Just Jared Jr releases the photo as they claim in this article, I’ve decided to empathize with the masses and offer a better version of the photo that will appear in Disney twenty three magazine. I’d like to thank everyone for their support, especially the dozens of ‘Zanessa’ fans who have caused StitchKingdom to have the best day ever in terms of traffic by a huge margin. And for the record, kids, I’m not a girl. To see the photo, you must click the Show button below. You can click the photo again to enlarge it and the cross-hairs in the lower left hand corner to see the full sized version. Enjoy.

Thanks to a tip from a Distant Creations reader, I was able to get my hands on a copy (or two, actually) of Disney twenty-three magazine, the companion guide to the new Disney 23 Official Community for Disney Fans, or the ‘Disney affinity club,’ as CEO Bob Iger recently referred to it.

First Impressions: First of all, I hesitate to call this a magazine. It’s not at all what might first come to one’s mind at the thought. No, this is actually more of a timely coffee table book. With 62 pages of content, this quarterly periodical packs in plenty of full color photos (when available) laid out in a very contemporary fashion accompanied by some well detailed articles. Quite arty. The pages are binded with glue, not staples and the pages are of a thicker stock than traditional magazines. The cover, which features an embossed title, might as well be hardcover. Priced at $15.95, it’s a modest investment. And I almost forgot to mention, it comes complete in a plastic, resealable protective pouch.

So what exactly is D23 aside from the tagline? According to the inside cover, D23 (referred to throughout the issue as Disney twenty-three) ‘celebrates the adventure Walt embarked upon and the amazing legacy that lives on in the work of Disney storytellers, animators, film-makers, Imagineers and Cast Members around the world.’ (more…)

UPDATE: You can read a full review of the magazine and see some photos here.

Thanks to Distant Creation / Inside the Magic’s Ricky and and one of his readers, we now have some amazing additional details on D23’s new magazine and the dates of the first expo to take place in Anaheim in September (d23expo.com was one of the domain names registered to Disney and currently forwards to http://d23.disney.go.com which currently serves up a blank page). For all the details, read the article here.

In related news, he also covers some of the D23 trademark applications here.

Speaking from the Deutsche Bank Media and Telecom Conference on March 3, Disney President and CEO Robert Iger had a lot to say during a Q&A session on the current state of the company and its potential future. (more…)

Join us as we welcome Disney Master Artist Dave Pacheco for a very special artist appearance and signing on Saturday, March 14, 2009. Dave will be on hand to sign a selection of artwork, a t-shirt and a pin featuring some of Disney’s most beloved characters. Additional information about this exciting event will follow the March 10, 2009 announcement revealing the answer to “Are you 23?” Details after the jump. (more…)